Sometimes I could hold a world record for indecision. At times I will go round and round more times than the Ferris wheel at the world’s fair rather than make a decision. I mean, what if I make the WRONG choice? What if I miss out on something else that is good by choosing one thing over another? How do I know for sure what I really want?
At times you would think the fate of humankind rested on me making a decision about something. But the funny thing is, when I finally DO make a decision…well, all is well. No big bang, no Armageddon, zip.
Thankfully, I have gotten much better at making decisions quicker or I’d be insane by now (not to mention those around me). I now do wild things (for me that is) like decide mid week that I am going away for a long weekend that same weekend and just spontaneously decide things along the way. While I wouldn’t leave my major life decisions up to a fleet of whimsy, for the more tame choices, why the hell not just decide? It sure beats struggling and torturing myself. And, again, it’s not like the fate of nations is resting on this choice (I hope!!!).
Basically making a decision boils down to:
- Deciding what you want
- Assessing the options and pros and cons
- Choosing
Now, the only step I’d add in there is that if your choice will significantly impact someone else you really need to be making joint decisions with (say like a business partner or your significant other), you might want to add a “communicate with other(s)” step.
The Nike slogan of Just Do It holds a lot of truth. Even for the really big life decisions, once you’ve done your due diligence and gotten any support you need — let it roll and Just Do It! The relief you feel as the weight of indecision dissipates will be immense.
Having trouble with any of these steps? Perhaps a Spring Cleaningwould be the perfect opportunity for you to focus on it and get results. Contact me to have an exploratory conversation about how I can help you build your own framework and confidence for making decisions.